Using 3D Plasma Cutting to Make Structural Steel

The use of steel in industrial architecture has been common practice for decades, and now the material is becoming popular in homes and other types of buildings. The ideal term for the framework of a multi-story building or structure is structural steel. Nowadays, a popular method for working with structural steel is three-dimensional plasma cutting. Most people, and even some architectural professionals, are still getting familiar with this new-age technology, but the benefits are beginning to make themselves known.

Structural steel is largely considered the skeleton of a building and is constructed with angles, beams, channels, columns, and plates, all of which are also made of steel. There are several methods used to fabricate structural steel, but the most popular method at the moment is three-dimensional plasma cutting. This technique evolved from plasma welding technology and is generally considered more advantageous than standard welding techniques.

The former technique for creating structural steel involved using a metal-toothed bandsaw to cut through steel cross sections and using beam drills to cut holes or slots into the steel. This technique has been used for several decades. Unlike this “metal-against-metal” cutting technique, 3D plasma cutting makes cleaner, more accurate cuts without producing metal chip by-products. This new method of cutting steel also allows for cutting through thicker metals, as opposed to laser cutting technology that can only cut through a limited range of thickness.

Older metal cutting methods are getting closer to being officially retired. The need for bandsaws and beam drill lines is slowly disappearing and being replaced by a uniform automated system that fabricates structural steel flawlessly. 3D plasma cutting technology is not only faster and more accurate, it also costs much less than older methods of cutting and fabricating structural steel. With the industrial future right around the corner, architectural firms everywhere can keep up with the changing demands of working with steel.